by Kevin, on May 7th, 2010
When arriving at the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport, a few miles west of Bentonville, it’s difficult to imagine that a facility with so few gates could ever become a portal to the future of environmentalism. But with Walmart’s recently aggressive sustainability initiatives, that’s precisely what is happening to this small airport. Will we look back ten years from now with disbelief, or should we have anticipated the impact of their action?
I’ll be honest, as a retail designer, I’ve never been a fan of Walmart. Don’t even get me started on issues regarding treatment of employees or potential correlation between poverty rates in counties where Walmart stores are located. There’s a great deal to dislike about the world’s largest retailer and corporation. It has a long list of enemies, detractors, and opponents. But my opinion is beginning to shift.
With little fanfare or self promotion, Walmart is changing not only how they do business, but also how their suppliers operate, persuading them to rethink production processes in an effort to reduce costs and environmental impact. Walmart wields such economic leverage that manufacturers have little choice but to follow their lead. This, of course, will likely create a sizable ripple within the retail industry. Walmart competitors will be pressured to change just to keep pace. No single company on the planet has the same potential for deep and radical change.
In Bentonville, practically everyone I met is currently or was once employed by Walmart – the hotel night manager once worked there, the waiter’s day job is there, the bartender and his brother work there, an acquaintance I meet at dinner used to be a writer there, you get the picture. Some of the biggest buildings and parking lots are related to Walmart – corporate offices, distribution centers, and stores. Streets are named for founder Sam Walton. The original store on the town green is preserved as a museum and visitor center. It’s almost impossible to experience any aspect of the region that isn’t directly or indirectly connected to Walmart. It’s like visiting a military town such as San Diego, CA or Norfolk, VA, where the Navy presence is so dominant that you’re practically guaranteed to see a soldier or a ship.
By the way, none of this should be misunderstood as criticism. I point it out to highlight the incongruity or the irony of the circumstances I witness each time I visit. The dialogue regarding environmental impact and strategies for change are becoming louder and more emphatic. On my last two trips to Bentonville, I was there to discuss sustainable building design and learn best practices from Walmart and supplier initiatives.
These thoughts were on my mind when I landed last week for another green conference and expo. The NWA Green Expo was sponsored by Walmart, Sam’s Club, and Shell Oil, but this fact was completely downplayed and practically hidden. The two-day event was free to the public and offered a half day of speakers and panel sessions, film screenings, presentations, and two days of exhibits.
Event organizers Nancy Desler and Kyle Howell were able to pull in some interesting featured speakers and panelists. Too many events of similar size rely on a model that often leaves me discouraged by the lack of separation between event sponsorship and educational content. Far too often, speakers present nothing more than a thinly veiled marketing pitch for products they’re attempting to hawk on the exhibit floor. That was not the case here. Even though some of the speakers did have booths, they used them as venues for education and engagement.
For example, panelist George Orbelian, co-founder of the non-profit organization Project Kaisei, spoke about his organization’s fieldwork in the Northern Pacific Gyre and what they’ve learned from their research. He didn’t have a service or product to pitch, just knowledge. His time spent in his exhibit booth was focused on sharing knowledge.
The two keynote speakers were the CEO and co-founder of TerraCycle Tom Szaky, and IBM Chief Technology Officer Catherine Lasser. There were also two panel discussions. The first focused on environmental issues and included Michelle Harvey with the Environmental Defense Fund, Dr. Alan Hecht with the EPA, and Stanley Alpert who is an environmental attorney. The second panel focused on solutions and included Eric Jackson with the consulting firm Conservis, Andrew Nisker who wrote and directed the film Garbage! The Revolution Starts at Home, Derrick Mains who is the CEO of GreenNurture.com, and George Orbelian with Project Kaisei. I was lucky to have access to most of the speakers and panelists for one-on-one conversations. I’ll post about my interviews and session educational content in follow-up posts.
There were approximately 90 exhibitors on the expo floor. Many events of this size are often overrun by companies that are loosely tangential to the event theme. At a recent show in Los Angeles I encountered an exhibitor showcasing beautiful clothing with no apparent link with sustainability. The best reason they could give me for their participation was that their product was made of cotton. That kind of experience leaves me wondering what possible selection criteria could expo organizers be using. Although there were one or two booths at the NWA Green Expo that had me scratching my head, this event had screened out any inappropriate exhibitors. Even better, most of the booths were showcasing local goods or services.
One exhibitor I liked was a gentleman by the name of Jason Quail. But he prefers to go by his eco hero persona, ECOGEECO. Several years ago he switched his daily transportation to the all electric vehicle pictured above and started driving to events, expos, festivals, and schools to teach kids about sustainability. On the second day of the expo he presented his one hour session, but I wasn’t able to attend due to a schedule conflict. I could easily tell from the ten minutes I spent with him that kids would probably find him very entertaining. By the way, his day job is IT with Walmart.
Many people will surely complain that Walmart’s motives are wrong, that their interest in sustainability is financial rather than environmental, that their dedication will be short-lived, and that they will return to environmentally unfavorable practices if those prove to be economically preferable. I for one am not terribly concerned with their motives. What I’ve seen so far suggests that the train has already left the station. They’re taking action now that’s beginning to have effect. I think the NWA Green Expo is another good example of how Walmart is striving to bring the community along with them on their sustainability journey.
Full disclosure: I have provided design services for Walmart in the past. In early 2009 I participated in a number of conceptual design projects while employed at a previous firm. I currently have no business relationship with the company or any of its suppliers or service providers.
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